AMMAN, JORDAN — King Hussein may threaten to drop PLO leader Yasser Arafat from a peace initiative to force him to make a declaration recognizing Israel and renouncing violence.

The showdown is expected on Monday at a meeting scheduled here between the Jordanian king and the Palestine Liberation Organization leader, say Palestinian, Jordanian and Western sources.

Dropping Arafat from the peace initiative could raise new problems for Hussein, the sources said. Given the constantly shifting alliances of the Middle East, the result of Monday's meeting is far from certain.

The attempt to force a statement from Arafat was a major purpose of a mission in Jordan last week by Assistant Secretary of State Richard Murphy.

But it was also the result of orchestrated moves by Israel, the United States and Jordan in behind-the-scenes maneuvers that could be an omen of dramatic realignment in the Arab world.

The maneuvers follow the recent cycle of Mideast violence, including the hijacking of the cruise ship Achille Lauro.

Hussein's irritation over Arafat became clear last week when he told reporters, ''Things have reached a point where we are going to have very shortly a very serious discussion with the leadership of the PLO to ascertain where we go from here.''

The reassessment also follows a peace proposal by Prime Minister Shimon Peres of Israel that includes some elements of the king's plan but appears to exclude a PLO role.

The maneuvers continued Saturday when Hussein flew to Baghdad for what diplomatic sources was an effort to ensure that President Saddam Hussein of Iraq did not allow Arafat a to set up a new headquarters there.

Suggestions that the PLO might move its base from Tunisia to Iraq were taken as an indication of desperation, for the Baghdad regime is noted for keeping tight political control on any group within its borders.